Project Officer - Future4Binti project - Countering Harmful Practices

The Organisation

Plan International is an independent development and humanitarian organisation that advances children’s rights and equality for girls. We believe in the power and potential of every child but know this is often suppressed by poverty, violence, exclusion and discrimination. And it is girls who are most affected.

Working together with children, young people, supporters and partners, we strive for a just world, tackling the root causes of the challenges girls and vulnerable children face. We support children’s rights from birth until they reach adulthood and we enable children to prepare for and respond to crises and adversity. We drive changes in practice and policy at local, national and global levels using our reach, experience and knowledge.

For over 85 years, we have rallied other determined optimists to transform the lives of all children in more than 80 countries.

We won’t stop until we are all equal.

The Opportunity

The Project Officer will provide overall regional level support for the Countering Harmful Practices F4B Project (2026–2030), funded by the Dutch Ministry for Foreign Affairs (MFA). This project aims to strengthen local civil society organizations to prevent and respond to harmful practices including Child, Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM), Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C), teenage pregnancy, and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) across Ethiopia’s Amhara, Oromia, Somali, and Afar regions.

The Project officers will work closely with contractual partners and government stakeholders to implement the Future4Binti project - Countering Harmful Practices. Working under the general guidance of the Future4Binti Project Coordinators, the Project Officers focuses on day-to-day implementation coordination, monitoring, and reporting of project activities within the assigned project locations, in line with approved plans, budgets, donor requirements, and Plan International Ethiopia policies and Standard Operational Procedures (SOPs).

Key Responsibilities:

• Support the planning, coordination, and implementation of activities to prevent FGM/C and child marriage.
• Strengthen community systems, local CSOs, and service providers to promote child protection, gender equality, and SRHR.
• Check up and monitor project activities are delivered according to approved plans, timelines, quality standards, and safeguarding principles.
• Provide technical support, coaching, and mentoring to partners and frontline service providers.
• Facilitate capacity-building initiatives, community dialogues, life-skills training, and social norms change interventions.
• Support meaningful participation of adolescents, youth, and children with disabilities in project activities.
• Coordinate with government offices, community structures, and other stakeholders to enhance collaboration and sustainability.
• Strengthen referral mechanisms and linkages among health, protection, justice, and community services.
• Monitor project implementation, conduct field visits, and support data collection, quality assurance, and corrective actions.
• Contribute to reporting, documentation of best practices, lessons learned, and continuous learning for project improvement.

The Individual:

Qualifications/ Experience/Skills Essential:

• Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, Sociology, or another relevant social science, with at least three years of relevant and direct experience, including a minimum of two years with an NGO.
• Strong knowledge and experience of gender-based violence (GBV), harmful traditional practices (HTPs), gender equality, girls’ rights, and child protection.
• Solid understanding of development and humanitarian principles, child protection, GBV and sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) policies and programs and NGO codes of conduct.
• Demonstrated experience in child protection, gender equality, HTP prevention, civil society development, advocacy, behaviour change and communications.
• Experience working with government bodies and engaging diverse stakeholders, including policymakers, senior managers, local authorities, civil society organizations, community leaders, and beneficiaries.
• Experience conducting joint supportive supervision and applying participatory monitoring, evaluation, and research approaches.
• Strong community mobilization, facilitation, planning, negotiation, communication, and representation skills.
• Ability to work effectively under pressure and adapt to changing circumstances.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a commitment to teamwork and continuous learning.

Languages required:

• Ability to communicate effectively in English, both orally and in writing is essential.
• In addition, knowledge of local languages Afar-afh is mandatory.

Safeguarding Children and Program Participants (Safeguarding) and Gender Equality and Inclusion (GEI)

• Understands and puts into practice the responsibilities under Safeguarding and GEI policies and Plan International’s Code of Conduct (CoC), ensuring that concerns are reported and managed per the appropriate procedures.
• Ensures that all staff in the unit/function/department are properly inducted on and understand their role in upholding Plan International’s safeguarding and GEI policies;
• Ensures that Plan International’s global policies for Safeguarding Children and Young People and Gender Equality and Inclusion are fully embedded in day-to-day work.
• Ensures that Plan Ethiopia contributes to Plan International’s global efforts to ensure safeguarding and GEI, including making sure that relevant reporting and data are submitted.

Location: Afar Program Area, Asayita

Type of Role:  Full time, Fixed term contract

Reports to: Project Coordinator

Grade: C1

Closing Date: 20 November 2026

Equality, diversity and inclusion is at the very heart of everything that Plan International stands for.

We want Plan International to reflect the diversity of the communities we work with, offering equal opportunities to everyone regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

Plan International is based on a culture of inclusivity and we strive to create a workplace environment that ensures every team, in every office, in every country, is rich in diverse people, thoughts, and ideas.

We foster an organisational culture that embraces our commitment to racial justice, gender equality, girls’ rights and inclusion.

Plan International believes that in a world where children face so many threats of harm, it is our duty to ensure that we, as an organisation, do everything we can to keep children safe. This means that we have particular responsibilities to children that we come into contact with and we must not contribute in any way to harming or placing children at risk.

A range of pre-employment checks will be undertaken in conformity with Plan International's Safeguarding Children and Young People policy. Plan International also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this scheme we will request information from applicants previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Please note that Plan International will never send unsolicited emails requesting payment from candidates.